Def, yes

It was a def* performance by Fire White against the Steelers in Lloydminster on Sunday in more ways than one. Excellent on the ice it was. A game that earned the Calgary team their 48th point in the Alberta Female Hockey League (Bantam Elite) placing them 16 points ahead of their closest rival, Fire Red in the southern division with eight games remaining.

*informal adjective: excellent.

DEF, no

But the journey home wasn’t so def. The bus was lacking DEF**, an essential ingredient for running a modern diesel engine and it was leaking the stuff, so much so that the team was held up by three hours until a solution could be sorted. At least it was a holdout in the arena, not a break down on the highway’s icy edge, an ugly prospect with the temperature dropping back down to minus 18. And it gave time for some other things. Time for the team to sit in the stands, devour a few large boxes of tasty pizza from Spiros while watching their older sisters on the Midget AAA Fire team play against the Steelers (the Fire lost). Time to check into the Fan 960 and listen to the Flames getting their seventh win on the trot with a 4-1 victory in Raleigh against Carolina Hurricanes. Oh, and time for a diversionary drive in the kiddy car with Spot the Dog.

**Diesel Exhaust Fluid

And now, back to the hockey

A couple of goals in the first period gave the Calgary team their sixteenth win of the season. Gracie Gilkyson scored after six minutes, beating Steelers goalie, Tianna Stanford with a back-handed shot over her left glove, assisted by Sarah Gaiser and Asha Hanson. It was the sixth goal of the season for the defender.

With just under two minutes remaining in the opening period, Sarah Gaiser got her second point of the game in a scramble in front of the net. The first of Gaiser’s close-range shots were stopped, then one from Ella Kitchen, then another from Hannah Suto. Gaiser dug in again and bundled the puck under Goalie Stanford’s left pad. Somewhere in the action, Stanford got an injury to her hand. and had to leave the ice, to be replaced by Kamden Rochford. No more scoring in the remainder of the game, due to another solid D game for White and giving Ali Kieren her fifth shutout of the season.

Final score: Lloydminster Junior Steelers 0-2 Calgary Fire White.

Song of the Match

Song of the Match in Lloydminster might have been Devo’s Whip It from 1980 with adedication to the blue-line slappers. Even better if the off-ice crew had played that eccentric new wave/punk band’s version (1978) of Satisfaction. Bryan Adams might have been in contention with his Canadian rink favourite, Summer of ’69 (1984) but there was a classic moment in the third period when one of the refs had an injury to attend to.

With space and time for a long burst of music, Lizzie leaped into dancing, on the Fire bench. Say what? Three Stars goes to Rolex by Ayo & Theo (2017). If you wanna watch, remember I just wanna Rolly, Rolly, Rolly…

Up next

Two games in the coming weekend: Olds Grizzlys are the visitors at Bowness Sportsplex, Calgary, Saturday, Jan 20, 2018 (19:30) and then on Sunday, Jan 21, Fire White host their GHC family rivals, Calgary Fire Red at Crowchild Blue Arena (15:45).

Dr. J. Ashley Nixon is a documentary photographer, writer, filmmaker, and university teacher, with a Ph.D. in ecology. His exploration of people, places, and performance focuses on sustainability themes, music, dance, art & design, and sports.